


you are the image of a bad boy

by soulas



Series: tumblr smols [6]
Category: Buzzfeed: Worth It (Web Series)
Genre: M/M, a ridiculous piece of work, high school/childhood friends au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-19
Updated: 2018-12-19
Packaged: 2019-09-22 18:54:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 886
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17065229
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/soulas/pseuds/soulas
Summary: Andrew gets a new neighbor.





	you are the image of a bad boy

**Author's Note:**

> andrew canonically calling steven a bad boy is certainly a thing that happened

When the new family moves in next door, Andrew is already apprehensive. First of all, they bought That House on the street. You know. The one that has been empty for years, the one all the kids on their bikes are terrified of passing. The one that is rumored to be haunted or possessed or murderous or something. Second, their new neighbors are super secretive. Like, they’ve lived there for a week and Andrew still hasn’t seen any of them around the neighborhood.

“They have a son your age,” his mom tells him. “You should go over and say hi.”

“What? I have never seen a kid over there.”

“Go,” his mom says, making a shooing motion with her hands. “Go be a nice neighbor.”

He doesn’t go over because he likes to maintain this image of a respectably private and aloof person. Also because he kind of lied. He has seen the new kid, I mean. They go to the same school. His name is Steven. He doesn’t talk like, ever. He’s really tall and has bright silver hair that you can spot a mile away in the hallways. Andrew does not think he’s pretty. (That’s a weird detail to throw in there, a voice that sounds suspiciously like Adam says in his head. Shut up, he tells the voice.)

But in their mostly white-bread student body of placid, uninteresting teens, Steven sticks out with his dyed hair and standard ensemble of ripped denim jackets and black jeans. And because the most interesting thing that’s happened in their town was a freak BBQ fire six years ago, Steven becomes somewhat of a school obsession. There are whispers of a Dark Past involving alcohol or gangs or maybe even illegal drugs, all fueled by the fact that Steven says nothing to deny any of this. Andrew and his reputation of Keeping to Himself stays out of all the speculation as much as possible. He mostly just stares at the back of Steven’s head in the only class they share, Calculus II, until Adam starts flicking bits of paper at him.

This is pretty much the status quo, until one day when Andrew’s walking out of school like four hours after everyone else because orchestra practice really is that heinous, and he sees a dark figure crouching by his car. The brushed silver hair stands out in the parking lot

_Oh my god, he’s slashing my tires_ , is Andrew’s first thought as he hurries to save his shitty car. “Hey!” he calls out.

Steven turns and there’s a huge grin on his face. “Hey!” he says. “Look!”

Andrew carefully approaches him. What could he be so ecstatic about? Maybe a switch knife, the paranoid side of his brain suggests.

“It’s a kitten!” Steven says excitedly, holding his hands out to Andrew. “It’s a baby kitten!”

“Kittens are already babies,” Andrew says automatically. (Yeah, he’s a smartass.)

Steven just walks over and gently tips the kitten into Andrew’s arms. “It’s so small and cute!” Steven says delightedly. He tickles the kitten’s head and the little thing rubs its face against his hand.

_This is strange_ , Andrew thinks dazedly. Like a scene out of a bad movie or something. “You like cats?” he asks warily.

“I love all animals,” Steven says cheerfully.

“That is so weird.”

Steven frowns. “Why? Who doesn’t love cute animals?”

“I don’t know. Just. You don’t look like you’d be into cutesy stuff.”

“What? What does that even mean?” Steven looks confused and Andrew wishes he’d never opened his dumb mouth.

“You…you wear leather jackets! And your hair…it’s all. Spiky,” he says lamely. “Don’t say anything. I know how dumb that sounded.”

Steven touches his hair like he’s never thought about it. “That is dumb,” he says. “A lot of nice people have spiky hair. Zac Efron has spiky hair.”

“I mean…you don’t talk either. How was I supposed to know,” Andrew says defensively.

“I thought you didn’t like me! You always have this weird frozen expression on your face when you look at me. Like this.” Steven does what Andrew considers a very poor imitation of a fish. “And anyways.” He shrugs. “No one’s very friendly.”

“I don’t know,” Andrew mumbles, feeling stupider every passing minute. “I thought...well, we all thought...you were some…I don’t know. Some kind of bad boy.”

Steven starts laughing. “Oh my god,” he says, gasping. “Oh my god, not at all.” And he laughs so hard his voice gets all high-pitched and he has to sit down on the asphalt.

Andrew’s never seen him laugh. It’s kinda cute. (Shut up, Adam. The kitten’s cute, is what he meant.)

(Insert something about childhood neighbors who grow up together and slowly fall in love. Andrew keeps the cat and calls her Limerick. (Get it?) Steven gets milkshakes with Andrew once a week after school and Andrew finds out two years later that he’s lactose intolerant. “You idiot!” Andrew says, but he can’t help laughing. Steven shrugs. “I’m not really lactose intolerant,” he protests. “Anyways,” he says, taking a loud sip of his shake. “Milkshakes are the best.” Maybe they have a crisis somewhere in the middle because I’m a sucker for angst, but they get over it. Get married. Live happily ever after with three cats.)

**Author's Note:**

> [tumblr](https://sovnly.tumblr.com/)


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